The Senior Home Safety Network Announces New Inspection Services to Help Keep Homes Safe for Seniors Aging in Place
When we were children, we would have never guessed that “coming home for the holidays” would include trying to check if our parents were still safe in their homes. Senior Home Safety Network (SHSN) founders Dan and Teresa Howard had exactly that happen to them, and announce nationally available inspection services to help seniors aging in place stay safe and bring peace of mind to their adult children.
Freeport, PA (PRWEB) September 27, 2010
When we were children, we would have never guessed that “coming home for the holidays” would include trying to check if our parents were still safe in their homes. Senior Home Safety Network (SHSN) cofounders Dan and Teresa Howard had that happen to them, and announce nationally available inspection services to help keep seniors safe in their homes and bring peace of mind to the senior's adult children. With regional offices in 42 cities, a concerned family member in California can easily order services in Maryland, or any other area. SHSN services identify safety hazards, find issues that need attention to protect the value of a home or ease the return of a senior to their home after being away from the house.
Dan remembers that before the problems started with the parents in Florida, “nobody was better at taking care of homes than my father-in-law, Louie. He did the odd jobs in the senior community where they lived in Florida just because he loved people and enjoyed tinkering. Anita was as sharp as a tack, and would clean your clock at cards because she was counting those cards from the time they left the deck.”
Then things changed, but Dan, Teresa and the other family members did not recognize what the changes meant. The house was not being kept clean and Louie’s tools were not in perfect order. That was the missed signal that Anita and Louie were in trouble and their home was no longer safe. With the power of hindsight, Teresa recalled the time that Anita was shocked that her mother stopped cleaning the home. For generations, housekeeping changes have been the secret barometer that things are slipping in a home and the lives of seniors, and for generations the children have missed that sign.
Dan says “it is almost funny, as kids, we would chuckle about getting something past our parents. Now the parents are getting things over on the kids such as they can’t fix the loose steps in the basement, or have the gas leak repaired. We were shocked that our parents can be sneaky when it came to fooling us into believing that they were still doing OK.”
The time did come that Anita and Louie did let down their guard to ask Dan and Teresa to visit and spruce up their Florida home. A little paint here, and an adjustment there and the work was supposed to be over. It was then that Dan, as a 30 year veteran home inspector noticed the wiring that was pulled out of the wall and the loose paddle fan over the master bedroom bed among other serious hazards in the home.
That was the beginning of the Senior Home Safety Network (SHSN) which is the first national service to help seniors and their families keep homes safe for seniors aging in place.
Senior Home Safety Network Inspectors have the equipment, certified training and education to recognize safety hazards in the home. Each SHSN Inspector must have criminal record clearances. These professionals must follow the SHSN Standards of Practice and utilize the network reporting system including the privacy provisions for clients.
SHSN inspector’s qualifications can be verified by calling the national office or on the senior Home Safety Network website. To eliminate any conflict of interest or the potential for fraud, SHSN inspectors are not permitted to perform any recommended work on the home.
SHSN’s mission is to help seniors maintain that quality of life, safety and personal freedom in their own home. The bottom line is that when they could, our seniors kept their families safe at home. Now it is our turn to help them. It is what should happen in the course of life.
Almost every SHSN inspector joined the network as a result of their experience with trying to help one of their loved ones to age in place. They know and understand the importance of this job. Information and ordering Senior Home Safety Network services can be done online (http://www. seniorhomesafetynetwork. com/2-4au_hto. html) or by calling the national office at 724 295 9123
Information about resources, services and products to assist seniors and their loved ones is available on the SHSN Facebook pages and the Senior Home Safety Network website (http://www. SeniorHomeSafetyNetwork. com). People facing the issues and challenges of helping seniors to age in place are welcome to share their experiences and connect to other persons facing these issues, related products and service links on the Senior Home Safety Network Facebook page.
About Us
The Senior Home Safety Network is a National Network of verifiably certified home inspectors with training and police clearances. We take our job and senior safety seriously. This program is a mission and a passion, not just a job. Each of our staff and every inspector is a part of the program because they believe in what we do. We are checking a home for health and safety issues. The Senior Home Safety Network is an American Society of Home Inspectors Endorsed Program (http://www. homeinspector. org/resources/partners. aspx)
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